INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Candidates for the Republican nomination for Indiana’s next governor will take the debate stage Tuesday night, two weeks before the state’s May 7 primary election.
Each of the six candidates in the competitive, multimillion-dollar primary race presented themselves as outsiders in an appeal to conservative voters, although five of them held statewide offices in a given moment. Whoever wins the primary will have the best chance of winning the November general election in a state that reliably elects Republicans.
Tuesday will be the final televised debate before the primaries for the candidates vying to replace the term-limited Republican governor. Eric Holcomb, which did not support any candidate. Early voting has already started in Indiana.
US Senator. Mike BraunWHO flipped a Democratic Senate seat in 2018, enjoys advantages such as fame, money and support from former President Donald Trump. Braun’s campaign has spent more than $6 million in 2024, according to the latest summary report. But he may not be able to attend the debate due to Senate votes begin Tuesday in Washington on aid plans for Ukraine and Israel.
Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch — another household name thanks to his dual candidacy with Holcomb — campaigned on cutting the state income tax and promised to strengthen drug and mental illness services. Crouch finished the most recent fundraising period with $3 million — the most money available of any candidate for governor in Indiana. But it only spent $2.1 million in the first three months of the year.
Businessman and former commerce secretary Brad Rooms The message is more moderate than that of other candidates, focused on the economy. Chambers has spent $6.7 million this year and reports show he contributed $8 million to his campaign.
The main priorities for Eric Doden, also a former state commerce secretary, plans to invest in Indiana’s small towns. It spent $5.2 million in the first three months of this year and last said it had about $250,000 in cash.
Once a rising star in Indiana politics, former Attorney General Curtis Hill struggled to compete. Hill lost the Republican delegation nomination in 2020 following allegations that he groped four women in 2018. Also running is Jamie Reitenour, a mother with no political experience, supported by Hamilton County Moms for Freedom. She said she would appoint her leader to head the national education department.
